Pilgrims heading to the Maa Vindhyavasini Dham temple in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, are set to get relief from the long traffic snarls that have plagued the route for years. The road connecting Shastri Setu to the temple is being converted into a four-lane stretch, meaning devotees travelling from the Purvanchal region will no longer have to sit through hours of jams to reach the shrine.
Rs 800 crore project gets the government's approval
Authorities have been steadily upgrading the roads leading to the temple, and the latest move targets the single-lane stretch between Shastri Setu and Bartar Tiraha, which will now be widened into a four-lane road. The state government has cleared the project, and construction is expected to begin soon. The roughly 4-kilometre stretch between Bartar Tiraha and Shastri Setu was proposed jointly by the Public Works Department and the National Highways construction wing, which sent the plan to the state government for approval. The estimated cost of the entire project comes to around Rs 800 crore. With the green light now in place, widening work will start as soon as funds are released, and officials say the move should significantly ease the hardship faced by travellers.
Work to proceed in two phases
The project will be carried out in two stages. In the first phase, the stretch from Bartar Tiraha to Shastri Setu will be turned into a four-lane road. A second proposal covers the stretch from Shastri Setu to Aurai, which is also planned to be widened into four lanes. Once both stretches are complete, traffic along the entire corridor is expected to flow far more smoothly.
Relief for devotees from several districts and Bihar
The biggest beneficiaries of the wider road will be pilgrims travelling from Varanasi, Ghazipur, Jaunpur, Bhadohi, Azamgarh and Ballia, as well as those coming from Gorakhpur and Bihar. At present, devotees from these districts often spend hours stuck in traffic, cutting into the time they get for darshan and turning what should be a short trip into an exhausting journey. Once the road is widened, pilgrims will be able to reach the temple, offer prayers and head back to their destinations without the usual delays.
Official says the problem will soon be resolved
Ashok Kumar, Executive Engineer of the Public Works Department, said a proposal had been sent to make the road from Bartar Tiraha in Vindhyachal to Aurai a four-lane stretch, and that it has now been approved. Under this plan, a four-lane road will come up between Shastri Setu and Bartar Tiraha in Vindhyachal, while a separate proposal for a road between Natwa and Aurai has also been submitted. He said, "Once both proposals are approved, the traffic jam problem will be completely resolved and movement will become smooth." Officials say construction will be sped up once the required funds are released, so that pilgrims can benefit from the upgraded road at the earliest.
